When the mention of a certain food or the aroma of a particular food evokes pleasant memories . . . THAT is a comfort food. The mere mention or smell brings back reminders of pleasurable times, perhaps a memory with friends or family that are no longer with us.
I have several comfort foods, warm oatmeal being one. Another that tops the list is fresh, warm, right-out-of-the-oven banana bread. The girls, having asked me to buy bananas while they were here for the week, then left with four bananas to spare. And just like that, I was left with the ingredients for making a bit of “deliciousness” as my friend Angela would say.
Being still in the throes of unpacking, moving and finding items, I have learned to multi-task many of my pans. My pizza sheet has doubled as a cookie sheet on more than one occasion. Unsure of where my loaf pans may be hiding at the moment, I substituted a 9×9 pan and the bread turned out quite nicely.
Without further ado . . . . here is my recipe!
Banana Bread
Ingredients
4-5 very ripe bananas
1 stick butter, softened
2 eggs
1 t. vanilla
1 cup light brown sugar, packed
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour *
1 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 and spray your loaf pan (or in my case the 9×9 pan) with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl, peel the bananas. Using an electric mixer or fork, mash the bananas so they are slightly soupy with some chunks present. In another bowl, mix the softened butter, eggs, vanilla and brown sugar until smooth. Stir in the bananas and mix again until smooth. Combine flour, baking soda and salt, stirring to combine. Add into the banana mixture and stir until dry ingredients are moistened – this will be a thick batter. Pour into the greased loaf pan (or 9×9 pan) and bake 45 minutes. Let set for 5-10 minutes before slicing, cutting or attempting to eat.
*while the recipe calls for all-purpose flour, I have been known to use 1 cup of all-purpose flour and 3/4 c. of wheat flour.
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